Heroes in the Shadows of Nightmares
by Bellalyse Winchester
Summary: A girl from another universe and a man in search of redemption...together, they will take on the universe.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I KNOW people will get all confused about this one...**

**First of all, YES, this is a SARAH/MASTER fic. A mad, mad combination...**

**Also, this might become the first in a series, so I would appreciate reviews to determine whether or not it should continue...?**

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The lights began to dim, until there was no light; she felt her skin crawl in the darkness and her breaths grow shallower. The world was gone in the blackness, and she was the only thing in the universe.

Then, the voice came.

"_Why you?_"

She remained silent, and the voice continued.

"What's your name?"

"Sarah—Sarah Page." Her own voice trembled. "Why do you have me here?"

"Because you are impossible," the voice breathed into her ear; she shivered in fear.

"How?" she asked, not sure she wanted to know the answer. The voice paused a moment before answering.

"Because you are dead."

At this point, Sarah's shallow breaths broke off; she looked up and finally saw the eyes of this man who spoke. Bright eyes that practically lit up the rest of his face. Instantly, she realized with whom she was dealing.

"That makes two of us, Prime Minister," she replied evenly.

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**And that was Chapter One! What do you think? Remember to REVIEW, give your opinion!  
**

**XOXO,  
Bella  
**


	2. Chapter 2

She woke several hours later to the gentle tapping of fingers upon wood. Furrowing her brow, she pushed away soft, cottony covers sleepily. She noticed she was wearing silk pajamas, and her hair was loose but cleanly washed, falling down her shoulders as she rubbed her eyes.

She surveyed her surroundings, analytical mind processing everything. She was in a hotel room, and a fairly nice one; two abstract paintings hung in gold frames on either side of a television, which was on a news channel, but muted. Vertical blinds were open just enough for a blinding stream of light to flood in.

She turned slowly; on the other bed, rapping two fingers on the small table between them, was that man. His eyes were watching intently her every move.

"Hello?" she asked curiously. He stopped tapping and leaned forward to her. He wore a gray 'AERO' tee and faded, torn jeans; his hair was blond and uncombed, falling casually into his eyes. Though he appeared so…_different_, he was still obviously Harold Saxon, the former prime minister.

"You seem comfortable," he said slowly. Sarah narrowed her eyes, swinging her legs off the bed.

"Should I be uncomfortable?"

"I just told you that you _died_."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Of _course_ I died. I remember. My legs were torn to ribbons and my spine was snapped by a future predator. You don't forget something like that."

The man, Saxon, raised his eyebrows, seeming impressed. "You remember?" he murmured. "Most people don't remember dying in an alternate universe."

"Sorry to disappoint." Sarah stretched her arms over her head, yawning. "I'm starving. Could we head out for burgers?"

As they left the hotel, Sarah noticed something odd; every man Saxon passed did a double-take, seeming to recognize him and then not…it was something darker, though. They didn't just recognize the former prime minister, they recognized something wrong.

"Why do they stare at you?" she whispered into his ear.

"They can almost remember," he replied simply.

As she grew more and more awake, her mind became clouded and confused with a thousand and one conflicting thoughts and ideas…anomalies—no, there was no such thing—Harry Saxon, where did he come from? She never knew that name before—no, she _did_ know him, she voted for him…no she didn't. She suddenly stopped, furrowing her brow in frustration.

She barely heard the approaching car.

Her senses were awoken as the man barreled into her and they heard the screeching of tires swerving to miss them.

"What the _hell_ are you thinking?" the man exclaimed in horror.

"Who are you?" Sarah cried. That put a little smile on his lips.

"_There's_ the fear," he said approvingly as he got to his feet. Extending a hand to her, he answered. "I'm the Master, and I'm the man who just saved your life."


	3. Chapter 3

They sat in the restaurant, eating in silence. The world buzzed around them; the world was an ignorant and wonderful place. Only two people in the entire room could feel just how fragile the universe around them was.

Sarah had wolfed down two cheeseburgers—even after all she had been through in one day, her hunger could not be satiated so easily—and drowned her chips in ketchup before downing them as well. She finished in a few minutes; half an hour more was spent watching this man—the one who called himself the Master—push chips about with his fork.

"Aren't you hungry?" she asked slowly; indirect questions seemed to be most useful, though her mind was still buzzing with confusion; faces she remembered, faces she couldn't place, and faces that she knew didn't belong…

"Not really." The Master finally lifted a chip to his lips, biting off a small bit before dropping it back onto his plate without enthusiasm. "You know, you can ask me whatever you like…as long as you stop phasing out right in front of traffic."

"Funny," Sarah replied dryly before reaching forward and snatching several of the Master's fries. "You'd think I could be allowed a bit of slack. What with being dead and all."

The Master smirked. "You're right, though. We're in the same boat. Sort of."

"Why do I know things that I _don't_?" Sarah asked fervently. "I know—I _know_—that I have never even heard of Harry Saxon before in my life, but when I saw you, that was the first thing I thought of."

"Multiverse transmentality phase-shifting," the Master said, though in Sarah's opinion it was by no means an explanation. "I always thought it was just a fairy tale."

"Oh, yeah." Sarah nodded. "I always preferred Cinderella, but I suppose multi-transmuting-phases is another good one."

"Oh, yeah," the Master nodded. "All the kiddies on Gallifrey, we loved this one."

"Gallifrey…" Sarah furrowed her brow. "Why does that sound…?"

"You had a counterpart in this world," the Master explained. "A woman called Tia Karim. She worked for UNIT, a military organization in this universe that fights…alien threats."

"I assume you don't mean illegals," Sarah said, watching the man's expression.

"No, I don't. Space aliens." He paused, as though expecting a surprised sort of reply; he didn't receive one.

"And?"

"And she would've known all about Gallifrey. It's the planet of the Time Lords, _very_ interesting aliens indeed."

"Are you a Time Lord?"

"I am."

Their gazes locked for several moments before Sarah smiled. "Well, then," she said thoughtfully. "We're both quite a bit away from home."

"You have no idea."

"And what is this multiple transfuser thing, anyway?"

"Multiverse transmentality phase-shifting," he corrected. "You did not have a normal death in your universe."

Sarah laughed thoughtfully. "Killed by a monster from the future while being dragged through a hole in time?" she smirked. "Yeah, don't suppose that could qualify as normal."

The Master smiled with her. "You were killed in _time_, not in _space_. There was no single moment where your soul ceased, because you died in that anomaly. It was the same as if you died within a TARDIS flying through the Vortex. Your mind, your memories, everything that was _you_ was lost to the Void."

"What's the Void?"

"What lies between universes," he answered curtly. "Then, Tia Karim died."

Sarah paused for a moment; the realization came with a vengeance that she was reborn because of death.

"I—what was me—was brought into this universe because of her?" she murmured. "Because she died?"

"It's trickier than that." He took another bite of a chip. "You literally created a new body—Tia Karim was killed in an explosion, her body was gone. I suppose the collision of two minds, two particularly clever minds, could be enough to create the new form…"

"But there's one thing I don't understand."

"You mean, everything else, you're taking completely in stride?"

Sarah smiled gently. "Master, if you'd seen what I've seen, known what I've known…what is it?" She gasped suddenly, seeing a tear crawling down his cheek. "What've I done?"

"Nothing," he said quickly. "It's just…that name."

Sarah furrowed her brow. "It's what you told me to call you," she murmured.

He shook his head. "I didn't really think of it until now. When you said it, it just felt…wrong. I chose that name so long ago, but that was before I…changed."

Sarah watched him in silent wonder, wonder at this man who knew so much about her, more than she herself knew, but about whom she knew nothing. She realized that she didn't mind not knowing, not really…slowly, she placed her hand on the side of his face, pushing away the tear with her thumb. He swallowed, and she could feel him ever so slightly leaning into her touch. He seemed to be drawing strength from her.

"What—what was it you don't understand?" he asked slowly, sitting back up straight.

She paused, her eyes tracing over his face. There were so many scars, not in his skin but in his eyes, in the way he breathed through slightly-open lips, as though he was alive but not living. Finally she spoke.

"Where you come in," she said slowly. "Why are you so interested in me?"

"I think you need someone," he answered quickly. "Someone who understands time, space…everything. You just traveled to a different dimension, and you shouldn't start out alone."

She watched him carefully; somehow, she didn't think he was telling the complete truth. There was something deeper, something more elusive about him…and that's how it began.

The Master and Sarah Page.

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**And this is the end to part 1! Review, tell me what you think, please, because they really do help. I'm writing now a series of oneshots and perhaps a few chapter stories, so if there's any ideas you have for them, any fluffy stuff you'd like to see, or just want to say hey, review it!**

**XOXO Always,  
Bella  
**


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